City Planners have a huge job to do. They are charged with making decisions, large and small, that ultimately affect the lives of City residents. To that end, and as required by the State of Wisconsin, the Plan Commission of the City of Middleton, in November of 2023, put forth its Comprehensive Plan.
HIGHLIGHTS of the Plan Commission’s VISION for LAND USE and HOUSING in MIDDLETON
STATED GOAL: Middleton will establish a land use pattern that promotes compact development, protection of natural resources, a range of housing options, mobility, and economic growth in order to maintain an exceptional quality of life (pg 15)
STRATEGIES and ACTIONS to meet the STATED GOAL include:
Support diverse land use toward complete and sustainable neighborhoods (pg 16-17)
Preserve natural resources through support for development that includes a wide range of housing types (pg 18)
Update and expand Conservancy Lands within the City, including through the use of the Middleton Area Pubic Lands Endowment (pg 20)
Ensure that land use decisions are scientific and data-driven (pg 21)
STATED GOAL: Middleton will support a wide range of housing types, sizes, and costs throughout the City, including quality affordable housing, in order to meet the projected housing needs. (pg 58)
STRATEGIES and ACTIONS to meet the STATED GOAL include:
Increase the number of housing units available by supporting appropriate infill that balances the wishes of neighborhood residents with the housing needs of the community (pg 61)
Allow “Missing Middle” housing types as an affordable housing option to meet the growing demand (pg 61)
Promote Homeownership Opportunities by partnering with non-profits, community organizations, and outside governmental entities to help produce affordable housing and provide funding options, while prioritizing first-time/first-generation homebuyers (pg 67-68)
Provide incentives for the creation and preservation of affordable housing options (pg 69)
STATED GOAL: Middleton will embrace the vibrant characteristics that shape our community’s evolving identity while celebrating its heritage. (pg 87)
STRATEGIES and ACTIONS to meet the STATED GOAL include:
Preserve and honor the historical, cultural, and natural resource assets and heritage in Middleton. (pg 88-89)
Review the roles of the City and the Middleton Landmarks Commission in the preservation of history. (pg 89)
STATED GOAL: Middleton will preserve, protect, and enhance our unparalleled connections to nature, agriculture, and water resources, and we will continue to lead with a community-wide stewardship ethic that will equitably mitigate climate change and adapt to our changing environment. (pg 94)
STRATEGIES and ACTIONS to meet the STATED GOAL include:
Protect and enhance our impressive public lands system that makes up 25% of Middleton’s land use (conservancies, parks, forests, and trail system) and provides recreation, beauty, tranquility, and multifunctional, ecological system services. (pg 95)
Promote biodiversity and value the many co-benefits provided by species in our ecological biome. (pg 95)
Place a value on Middleton’s urban tree canopy using carbon valuation on the market that corresponds to their carbon sequestration potential. (pg 100)
Identify and fund a diversity of tree species in the urban tree canopy that consider climate mitigation, carbon sequestration, and resiliency in both urban forestry, and to mitigate existing rural afforestation. (pg 105)
To further support these Land Use and Housing goals, the Plan Commission also produced a Future Land Use Map that lays out the City’s vision for how land within the City should be used as it moves through the next 20 years. This map can be found on pages 23 & 24 of the Comprehensive Plan. It clearly delineates where an Existing Neighborhood, a Mixed-Use Downtown parcel, Conservancy Land, and an Environmental Corridor have been designated to stop and start.
Until a DEVELOPER wanted to change that.
Which is where we find ourselves today.
Read more & see photos HERE.